Dry season GES support may suffer another delay

The GES – a scheme that allows farmers to access  farm inputs support through their mobile phones directly from the agro dealers – is designed to equip and support the farmers before the beginning of every farming season.However, since the lunch of the scheme in 2011, farmers have continued to decry the delay in the […]

The GES – a scheme that allows farmers to access  farm inputs support through their mobile phones directly from the agro dealers – is designed to equip and support the farmers before the beginning of every farming season.
However, since the lunch of the scheme in 2011, farmers have continued to decry the delay in the distribution of the inputs, which, they said, makes the impact of the support very minimal in food production.
Dry season farmers in Bakalori irrigation project at Talata Mafara, Zamfara State in an interview with this reporter recently complained that the federal government’s GES support to them at the project site came late last season.
The Bakalori farmers’ complaints were the same with those of farmers from Argungu and Birnin-Kebbi in Kebbi State. They advised the government to begin the inputs support distribution early to enable them benefit significantly from the scheme.
Similarly, a report by the Federal Public Administration Reform Programmes on GES last year also advised government to start inputs distribution to small holder farmers earlier in order to realise the full potentials of the scheme.
The federal government had earlier planned to begin the inputs distribution to dry season farmers this November as a result of various feedbacks received on the GES programme. That is not happening!
A source at the ministry, who requested anonymity, said plans have been concluded to begin the inputs distribution this November but final approval from the minister, Dr Adesina Akinwumi, is still being awaited.
“They are preoccupied more with the strategies for the next elections. The GES thing may start December or even January next year,” the source said.